WOODCUTTERS' IMPLEMENTS. 175 



for the handle. In order to give the axe a sharp edge, a wedge- 

 shaped piece of steel is placed between the thin iron ends, and 

 they are then welded together, or in the trimming-axe a steel 

 plate is welded to the side which remains flat. 



The felling-axe is the handiest of all woodcutters' tools, 

 and in cases of necessity, however improperly, it may be used 

 as a substitute for almost any other tool. It consists of the 

 axe-head and handle, the latter made of a tough split piece of 

 ash, hornbeam, beech, robinia, hickory or whitebeam; the hole 

 in the axe-head into which the handle fits is termed the eye, 

 and usually widens-out on the side opposite that where the 

 handle is inserted, to allow of a wedge being driven in to hold 

 the handle firmly in its place. The part of the axe away 

 from its edge, including the eye, is termed the back, and may 

 be curved or flat, and in the latter case is of steel. The cut- 

 ting part is termed the blade, which may also be either straight 

 or curved. 



The characteristics of a good axe are : that the edge shall 

 be sharp and the steel of which it is composed possess the 

 proper degree of tempering, so that when used, on the one 

 hand, it may retain its cutting-edge without the latter becom- 

 ing bent, and on the other, the edge may not be too hard, and 

 break. As regards shape, the axe should form a tapering 

 wedge with smooth sides. In order to reduce friction as 

 much as possible, the sides of the axe should be slightly 

 convex, or there should be a slight projection in the middle of 

 the blade. The weight of an axe, its size and relative dimen- 

 sions depend on whether it is to be used for hard and heavy, 

 or soft, light wood. In the former case the action is chiefly 

 cutting ; a finer edge is then required and the axe should be 

 lighter and thinner than one used for softwoods, which in 

 all parts, and especially in the back, is thicker and broader 

 than the hardwood axe, acting more like a wedge. 



In no case, however, should the axe be too large or heavy, 

 as it then fatigues the woodcutter and does not work so 

 economically as a lighter implement. 



The axe-handle is sometimes straight and sometimes curved, 

 sometimes parallel to the edge and sometimes bending from 

 or towards it. It is difficult to decide which shape is most 



